DeannaInUganda

I am Uganda's Domestic Goddess

I am just so proud of myself!

I MAKE MY OWN YOGOURT!!!!

That's right, you read it here first. I am actually creating yogourt, at home, with only my instincts and cunning ability to read instructions to guide me.

You see, I eat A LOT of yogourt (it is both healthy and magically delicious). And when you consider that one cannot buy fat-free yogourt in Uganda, and that most brands here specify that their yogourts do not need to be refridgerated, and that is VERY SUSPICIOUS, I decided that the my high-volume yogourt consumption either needed to be decreased or modified. (I mean, what the heck are they putting in that stuff so that you don't need to refridgerate it? Oh, and as a sidenote, most people here also don't refridgerate eggs. That's right, EGGS. Why the whole country isn't curled up around the toilet with salmonella poisoning is beyond me.)

So, anyways, back to the ever-fascinating yogourt. I checked on the internet, and discovered that making my own fat-free, refridgeration-necessary yogourt was super easy. (At this point, I would like it to be noted that I have just broken the record for the number of times one can use the word 'yogourt' in a blog post.) Now, okay, since i'm so enamored by this whole thing, i'm going to share the instructions with you, since I know that everyone who checks this blog is really just here for the odd recipes.

So, you need:
- A saucepan
- A thermos
- Your finger
- Skim milk
- A couple tablespoons of live-culture sugar-free yogourt
- Fat-free powdered milk (optional)

1)Heat the milk in the saucepan just until simmering, and immediately remove from heat, and cool until it is 100 degrees farenheit. (The recipe i read said you need a candy thermometer for this, but my alternate method is this: 100 degrees is very close to body temperature. Wash your hands, then stick your finger in the milk, and when it feels like its the same temperature as your finger, proceed to the next step. I swear that works.)
2) Mix in a tablespoon or two of the yogourt. (For your first batch, you need to buy some yogourt, after that you can just use yogourt from your previous batch.) Mix well!
3)Optional step: Mix in a couple tablespoons of powdered milk. Without it, your yogourt will be fine, but it will be quite runny. This thickens it up! (Store bought fat-free yogourts are thickened with gelatin or pectin or extra 'milk solids', which is what the powdered milk basically is.)
4)Pour the mixture into the thermos, and then put the thermos in a turned-off oven, or wrap it in towels, or do something else that will minimize thermos-heat loss.
5) 8 hours later (I leave it overnight) you will have ... Yogourt!

How much time did i just spend typing about yogourt? I need to get some work done....

posted by Deanna @ 2:20 p.m.